Panasonic AG-DVX100B User Manual page 11

Video image
FIRST THINGS
FIRST
Determining the
dominant light
source
Before shooting,
determine whether
most of the light in
the scene is com-
ing from the sun or
from artificial lights.
For best color re-
sults, try to reduce
the light com-
ing from the less
dominant source.
You can do this by
covering windows (if
your primary light
source is artificial)
or by turning off
incandescent and
fluorescent lights
and placing your
subject close to
a window (if your
primary light source
is sunlight).
It's also possible
to match artificial
lights to sunlight by
covering the lights
with blue color con-
version gels which
can be found in the
light kits.
Matching the light
using one of these
methods will pro-
1
vide better color for
your scene.
10
4 STEPS FOR AVOIDING OVEREXPOSURE
2
Selecting the right neutral density
filter
Neutral density filters allow the camera
to operate correctly outdoors in sunlight.
A neutral density filter does for the cam-
era what sunglasses do for your eyes—it
reduces the amount of light that can pass
through without changing the color of that
light.
AUTO IRIS
If you are using auto iris (see "Setting an appro-
priate iris" on the next page), the camera will tell
you when you should be using a neutral density fil-
ter with a message in the middle of the LCD screen.
MANUAL IRIS
If you're using manual iris, you can judge the
need for a neutral density filter by monitoring the
F-stop of the lens. If you're at F16 and the scene
is still too bright, turn on the neutral density filter.
Note: 1/64 ND reduces more light than 1/8 ND.
If you are indoors and your scene is too dark even
with the F-stop reading OPEN, make sure the ND
filter is OFF.
3
Setting a white balance
White balancing the camera guarantees that white and all other
colors record correctly. Though the human eye cannot perceive it, white
light coming from the sun is different than white light coming from a
light bulb. Different light sources have different "color temperatures"
measured on the Kelvin temperature scale. Artificial light has a color
temperature close to 3200K and appears orange to the camera. Sun-
light has a color temperature of 5600K and appears blue to the camera.
You should white balance your camera before recording, but especially
when lighting conditions change (moving from sunlight to artificial light
or vice versa).
Performing a white balance
1. Set the WHITE BAL switch to A or B.
2. Point the camera at a piece of white paper or a white
object and zoom in so that it fills the frame.
3. Press and hold the AWB button on the front of the
camera.
4. Release the button when AWB Ach (or Bch) ACTIVE
appears in the viewfinder. Continuing to hold the button
will also black balance the camera. Don't panic if the
LCD suddenly goes black.
ND FILTER SETTINGS
1/64 cuts light intensity by 1/64
1/8 cuts light intensity by 1/8
OFF ND filter is not used